Today Vice President Antonio Tajani travels to Peru accompanied by a large business delegation composed of 44 representatives of 37 European companies and industry associations from 10 EU Member States.

In total, these organisations and their member companies have a combined turnover of some € 320 billion, while the business associations alone represent 64 500 companies which generate almost two million jobs, either directly or indirectly.

This mission is part of the series of "Missions for Growth" to help European enterprises, in particular small and medium sized enterprises, to better profit from fast growing emerging international markets. The visit will reinforce partnerships to help industry and SMEs to fully exploit the potential for commercial relations between Peru and the EU.

During his two day visit to Peru, Vice President Tajani will meet with the President of the Republic OllantaHumala Tasso, the President of the Council of Ministers, Juan Federico Jimenez Mayor and several members of the Peruvian government, notably the Minister of Foreign Affairs Rafael RoncaglioloOrbegozo and the Minister of Production Gladys Triveño Chan Jan.

With his Peruvian counterparts, VP Tajani will sign Letters of Intent in the fields of SME development, industrial cooperation, raw materials, sustainable construction and tourism.

1. SME developmentThe aims are to improve the business environment, promote entrepreneurship, help Peruvian and European SMEs to grow and do business together and to better compete in the global economy. The Letter of Intent will improve the framework conditions for SMEs by reducing administrative burdens, increase access to finance, and improve markets by modernising the regulatory environment. Such cooperation will help to identify the main obstacles related to regulatory and administrative environment for SMEs, as well as finding appropriate solutions to overcome them. A regular high level dialogue will support this process, as is successfully being implemented with other countries, such as China or the US.

2. Industrial cooperationThe aim of this letter of intent is to promote and encourage direct cooperation between industrial sectors of mutual interest to the EU and Peru based on the bilateral cooperation programme 2007-13, in order to promote their growth and development and to reduce the gap between them.

3. Raw materialsA letter of intent to open policy dialogues on raw materials will be signed. The extractive industries of both sides play a key role in the supply of these materials. The competitiveness of these sectors is a crucial factor in reducing vulnerability of industry in both regions by making supply of these materials more secure.

4. Sustainable constructionA specific political agreement will be signed in the field of sustainable construction in order to deepen industrial cooperation with the aim of identifying priorities and developing mutual potential in the fields of construction design codes, construction processes and environmental impact assessment. The intention is to support and promote policy measures to establish a dynamic, integrated and decentralised approach to managing cooperation in areas of interest to the construction industry, so as to create a favourable environment to serve their mutual interests.

5. TourismThis letter of intent will promote actions to facilitate tourism flows between the EU and Peru by promoting travel, in particular in the respective low seasons. The intention is to establish a bilateral consultation mechanism to promote cooperation on and a common understanding of issues in the field of tourism. Particular focus will be placed on holding regular dialogue of senior officials and exchanging best practices on subjects of mutual interest, such as sectoral economic growth and job creation.